Managing the Challenges in Human Service Organizations: A Casebook

Managing the Challenges in Human Service Organizations: A Casebook offers current and aspiring human service managers a view into the kinds of experiences they will likely encounter to better prepare them for the world they are about to enter. The cases are inspired by real situations and are designed to encourage students to determine how they would act and work towards a resolution of the dilemmas presented. Key Features   Simulates administrative dilemmas through cases that offer different aspects of agency administration and replicate aspects of actual practice Levels the learning field for students entering graduate human service management programs with different managerial experiences Orients students to the challenges of management by helping them develop mental models linked to the values of client-centered administration Helps students develop a beginning sense of competence and understanding of managerial work while refining their analytic skills Offers the opportunity for repeated learning opportunities using different analytical frameworks Supplements fieldwork by providing more time to reflect and consider a broader array of alternatives than is found in most field experiences Intended Audience   This book is ideally suited as a supplemental text for advanced undergraduate and graduate courses in social work and counseling, as well as a much-needed reference for human services supervisors and practitioners.

Table of Contents:
1. Introduction Overview The Uses of Case-Based Learning The Value and Benefits of Case-Based Learning Conceptual Frameworks Managerial Roles Competing Values Management Functions Summary 2. Case Assessment and Debriefing Case Debriefing Use and Organization of the Casebook Summary 3. Governance, Environment, and Structure Governance Case 3-1 Meddling Trustees Case 3-2 KidsCan Case 3-3 Dorchester House Board of Directors Case 3-4 The Perfect Storm Case 3-5 Poor Leadership Boundaries Environmental Relations Case 3-6 The Cabal Case 3-7 Cost of a Tuxedo Case 3-8 Choosing a Director Case 3-9 Collapse of the Coalition Structure Case 3-10 Merging Colossal and Grassroots Agencies Case 3-11 Poor Interdepartmental Communication or Competing Service Ideologies? Case 3-12 Whose Interests Are Being Served? Case 3-13 Greenvale Residential Treatment Center Chapter Exercises 4. Leadership and Ethics Leadership Case 4-1 Empowering Staff: Real or Imaginary? Case 4-2 Caught in the Middle: Mediating Differences in Gender and Workstyle Case 4-3 To Talk or Not to Talk? Case 4-4 Agency Director Uses a Personal Coach to Address His Leadership Style Case 4-5 Founder’s Syndrome Case 4-6 Executive Leadership Case 4-7 Marian Health Center Case 4-8 Mosaic County Welfare Department Case 4-9 Project Home Ethics Case 4-10 Damage Control Case 4-11 Philosophy Versus Economics Case 4-12 What? Me worry? Chapter Exercises 5. Planning and Program Design Planning Case 5-1 Mallard County Private Industry Council Case 5-2 Be Careful What you Wish For Case 5-3 Decisions on Resource Allocation Case 5-4 Rational Versus Political Decision Making Case 5-5 The Achievement Crisis at Girls Works Case 5-6 Cutbacks and Performance Pressure Case 5-7 Hillside Community Center Case 5-8 Empowering Staff to Advocate for Chicano/Latina Clients Program Design Case 5-9 Banksville Human Services Center Case 5-10 Massive Retrenchment Case 5-11 Productivity and Performance Case 5-12 Responding to Changing Client and Community Needs Chapter Exercises 6. Financial Management and Information Systems Fund Development Case 6-1 Should We Accept the Gift? Case 6-2 Changing the Ground Rules Budgeting Case 6-3 Showdown Case 6-4 Improving Cash Flow Case 6-5 Desperate for Program Funding Case 6-6 Painful Choices Information Systems Case 6-7 Measuring Performance Case 6-8 Information Services Overload Case 6-9 Evaluating a Strategic Plan for Children’s Services Chapter Exercises 7. Human Resource Management and Supervision Human Resource Management Case 7-1 The Case of Missing Staff Case 7-2 Client-Centered Administration or Organization-Centered Administration? Case 7-3 Union Headache Case 7-4 The Influence of Religious Beliefs Case 7-5 Growing Pains Case 7-6 Challenges on the Line Case 7-7 Selecting a Clinical Director for Friendly House Case 7-8 Fire a Competent CFO? Supervision Case 7-9 SOS in DHS: A Problem of Motivation Case 7-10 Deteriorating Performance of a Supervisee Case 7-11 Helping Supervisors Manage Their Staff Case 7-12 Supervising Five Case Managers Case 7-13 Supervisory Leadership Chapter Exercises 8. Organizational Dynamics and Change Case 8-1 Implementing Organizational Change as a Newcomer Case 8-2 Diagnosing Managerial Practice in a Budget Crisis Case 8-3 How Are We Doing? Case 8-4 Jefferson Hospital Case 8-5 Thurston High School Case 8-6 Leadership Challenges in Transforming a Public Human Services Agency Chapter Exercises References Index About the Authors

About the Author :
Michael J. Austin (Ph.D., Social Work; MSPH, Public Health, University of Pittsburgh) is Milton and Florence Krenz Mack Distinguished Professor of Nonprofit Management at the University of California, Berkeley, where the teaches a wide range of courses, including Assessing the Dynamics of Communities, Groups and Organizations, Management Practice, Research Resources, and Assessing Nonprofit Organizations. His research interests are nonprofit management and planning, organizational change, and policy implementation. He is the author or co-author of a wide range of books and journal articles. Ralph Brody, Ph.D. passed away on February 8, 2006. Dr. Brody was previously on the faculty of Cleveland State University where he taught social policy and human service administration. He also taught graduate courses on human service delivery models at Case Western Reserve University. Previously, he served for fifteen years as the executive director of the Federation for Community Planning, an organization that provides research, planning and advocacy on health and human services. Dr. Brody authored books on case management, the state legislative process, fundraising events, community problem solving, service learning, and macro practice. Dr. Brody’s many years as a manager and teacher convinced him that the issues facing those in human service organizations were universal and applied to boards of directors as well as NGOs. He dedicated himself to developing tools to enhance the understanding and skills of those in leadership roles, from Cleveland to India, Spain, Ghana, Ethiopia, Egypt and Nigeria.  His frequent workshops in Kenya led to the translation of his casebook into the Swahili language. His co-authored book with Dr. Nair: Grassroot Development – Establishing Successful Microenterprises has been published in English and Malayalam language. Dr. Brody’s work touched millions, and his contributions will continue to educate, inform and inspire future students and professionals in human services field.